The strong performance outweighed concern about the coronavirus in China, a major market as well as manufacturing hub for Apple, and a slight revenue miss in the company’s closely watched services business, which includes the new Apple TV+ streaming offering. Apple gave a revenue forecast for the quarter ending in March above Wall Street expectations. Cook told CNBC that Apple has shut one store in China and is restricting employee travel due to the virus. In the year since, Apple slashed prices in China, one of its most important markets, to rekindle sales there. Apple reported services revenue of US$12.7 billion, below analyst estimates of US$13 billion, and up from US$10.9 billion the year before.

BA’s move followed some flight cancelations to China by United Airlines Holdings Inc, which blamed a sharp fall in demand. BA said customers due to travel to or from China in the coming days could find out more on its Web site. That compares with 1.5 percent for Air China Ltd (中國國際航空), which is also vulnerable, the analysts wrote in a report. Passenger traffic at airlines such as Cathay and China Southern plunged 32 to 37 percent in the first half of 2003, because of SARS, Teo and Muckensturm said. China Southern shares fell as much as 6.7 percent as trading resumed in Hong Kong following the Lunar New Year break, while Air China slid 5.5 percent and China Eastern Airlines Co (中國東方航空) dropped as much as 7.7 percent.

Elizabeth Entin told jurors that Haleyi, visibly upset, told her in the summer of 2006 that Weinstein forced oral sex on her. “I said: ‘Miriam, that sounds like rape,’” Entin testified, using Haleyi’s full first name. Since 2017, more than 80 women, including many famous actresses, have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct. She said that one evening Haleyi appeared unusually nervous, and told her Weinstein had assaulted her in his home. Entin testified that she urged Haleyi to speak to a lawyer, but that Haleyi did not want to.

By Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporterThe nation’s three airlines said that they would cancel some flights to China due to the 2019-nCoV outbreak. “First-tier cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Ningpo, are among canceled destinations, with second-tier cities also included,” an EVA communications officer told the Taipei Times by telephone. State-owned China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) on Monday said that it would halt 10 flights to China between tomorrow and Feb. 10, with the affected destinations including Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Xuzhou. StarLux Airlines Co (星宇航空), which began operations just last week, on Tuesday said that it would cancel part of its flights from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Macau. It would maintain only two flights between Taiwan to Macau during the period, it added.

The plan also lets Israel annex West Bank settlements. Trump praised Israel for taking “a giant step toward peace” with the plan, which lays out a vision for future Palestinian statehood if a series of strict conditions are met. These include requiring the future Palestinian state to be “demilitarized,” while formalizing Israeli sovereignty over settlements built in occupied territory. The plan makes it clear that Israel is free to annex its settlements on Palestinian lands right away. Israeli Minister of Defense Naftali Bennett yesterday said that Trump’s plan created a window for applying Israeli sovereignty on nearly one-third of the occupied West Bank.

AFP, WELLINGTONNew Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has called a general election for September, in a vote that will test whether her widespread popularity overseas is matched by support at home. Bridges reacted to the election announcement by pledging to lead a government that “will deliver” on its promises. The New Zealand economy has struggled under low growth, while the cost of living has risen. New Zealand Minister of Finance Grant Robertson said the infrastructure spend to be released this week would target roads, rail, schools and healthcare projects across the nation. The poll date avoids school holidays and All Blacks matches, which are said to have a bearing on election outcomes.

He refused to answer questions about whether it would include Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, signaling that it was premature for Palestinians to rule it out. Netanyahu’s office said most of the meeting actually focused on Iran, although the peace plan was also discussed. He called his peace plan “a significant and historic milestone” that he looked forward to implementing once he became prime minister, in tandem with other countries in the region, specifically mentioning Jordan. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Jordan Valley in particular is considered a vital security asset. In 1994, Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty, the second between Israel and its Arab neighbors after Egypt.

AFP, BOURNEMOUTH, EnglandMikel Arteta hailed Arsenal’s “hungry” youngsters after Bukayo Saka and Eddie Nketiah on Monday fired their side into the FA Cup fifth round with a 2-1 win against AFC Bournemouth. Arteta turned to youth at Dean Court, and Saka, Nketiah and Joe Willock repaid the Arsenal manager’s faith with influential displays that secured a trip to third-tier Portsmouth. Saka gave Arsenal an early lead as the 18-year-old fullback bagged his third goal of the season with a superb strike. Martinelli had scored in Arsenal’s past two Premier League games to reach 10 goals for the season. Unable to contain Willock and Saka, Bournemouth were carved open as the midfielder’s pass found the defender in acres of space on the left.

The GuardianThe sudden surge in violence in Yemen could scupper fragile moves toward a peace settlement, UN special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths said. Houthi rebel forces appear to have cut off and routed the government forces, even overcoming close air support from Saudi Arabia. The upswing in violence “told us is that the war is not over,” Griffiths said. Griffiths acknowledged that the previous strategy of localized agreements before national talks, such as an agreement over the strategic port city of Hodeidah, was no longer appropriate. “Progress on the agreement is vital if we are to launch political talks,” Griffiths said.

The Guardian, TOKYOSumo fans in Japan are celebrating after the lowest-ranked wrestler beat incredible odds to emerge victorious at the first main tournament of the year. “Deep down, I’m feeling like: ‘Is it okay for me to win the championship?’ I was the lowest-ranking fighter, so I had nothing to fear. “It was a tear-stained win over Takakeisho and everyone in the stadium was captivated.”Tokushoryu, who held the lowly rank of No. 17 maegashira going into the tournament, became the first bottom-ranked wrestler to win a top-division sumo title since March 2000. He later said he had been inspired by the death, midway through the competition, of his university coach.

That is when coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch arrived and Staley’s outlook changed. That patience has been rewarded with his second trip to the Super Bowl. “It really played out exactly like they spelled it out in 2017, so once they were here, I knew it was a special, special group,” Staley said. “That always surprised me, but I think Joe really loves football and I don’t think he wasn’t having that much fun. He is a key part of a dominant li“He’s returned to vintage Joe Staley,” McGlinchey said.

However, experts believe that there is a 70 percent chance of a major earthquake striking the Japanese capital in the next 30 years. Because of this, the foreign residents welcomed all the advice that they got. More than 30 interpreters, covering six languages, were on hand to help the participants, who hailed from 44 countries. “I actually think it is amazing the effort. They tell you ... to prepare, prepare, prepare because it is easy to go through daily life and not worry about it,” Nicaraguan Ambassador to Japan Rodrigo Coronel said.

By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterBecoming a full professor might signal the start of an easier work life for some academics, but for National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) physicist Lin Hsiu-Hau (林秀豪) it means embarking on a new research trajectory — neuroscience. After receiving his doctorate in physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, Lin obtained an academic position at NTHU at 30 and was promoted to full professor at 38 — faster than most academics. Specializing in statistical physics and spintronics, Lin, now 50, has published nearly 80 research papers, including several that have been cited more than 100 times and one that has been cited more than 350 times. After thorough reasoning, Lin turned to neuroscience, as he was curious to learn about how humans tell lies, he said. Lin joined academic conferences and introduced his novel concepts on posters, facing harsh challenges from other established experts as if he were a student, he said.

AFP, MELBOURNERoger Federer admitted that he was “incredibly lucky” after pulling off one of the greatest escapes of his career yesterday, saving seven match points to beat Tennys Sandgren of the US for a place in the Australian Open semi-finals. However, Sandgren was not ready to surrender, breaking twice in the second set as Federer’s touch abandoned him, sending down 15 unforced errors. He grimly hung on in the fourth set, saving three match points at 5-4. It went to a tiebreaker, where more drama was in store as a ball kid collided with Sandgren at the changeover. Federer incredibly saved another four match points before winning the tiebreak 10-8, sending the crowd into a frenzy.

BloombergOne way the rich get richer is through inheritance, and they are barely paying taxes on it. To make the system fairer, Batchelder proposes scrapping the estate tax and replacing it with an “inheritance tax.”The difference is more than semantic. The Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center estimates her proposal could raise as much as US$1.4 trillion over the next decade. Under the current system, wealthy Americans and their estates are required to pay 40 percent on bequests and gifts to heirs. Batchelder’s proposal would scrap this system, in which estates are taxed, and replace it with a system in which heirs pay income and payroll taxes on the money they receive.